Semiconductor centric Digital India FutureLABS launched by MeitY
Date: 06/02/2024
MeitY in co-ordination with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) launched Digital India FutureLABS at the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology in New Delhi in presence of Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology. Government officials from MeitY, executives from CDAC and senior executives from industry such as Mahindra, Minda, NXP Semiconductors, Tenstorrent, Saankhya Labs and Qualcomm India were present where they have signed MoUs in various technology spaces they are expertise at. A total of 20 MoUs with industry was signed for implementing futureLABS in 6 verticals of automotive, compute, communication, strategic electronics, industrial electronics/ IoT and design and innovation.
"India tech and innovation ecosystem is expanding and growing while catalysing the next wave of startups in AI to semiconductors, electronics system design and innovation starting at Digital India FutureLABS” Minister Chandrasekhar said. An announcement on two Karnataka based futureDESIGN semiconductor fabless companies under the Semicon India Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme was made by Minister during this launch.
Digital India futureLABS to act as a catalyst in providing opportunity for Indian startups in electronics system design and manufacturing (ESDM) and emerging technology areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and Quantum Computing in applications such as automotive, industrial IoT, communication, compute, and strategic electronics. FutureLABS will be platform to develop quantum computer, 6G cellular technology, Industrial IoT and more.
futureLABS to create an IECT Research & Innovation framework for India to lead in Standards, Ips, Systems and Platforms for Electronics System Design. futureLABS to strengthen the domestic Research & Innovation ecosystem in identified areas through collaborative initiatives, leading to sustainable growth and technological advancement.
It's an amalgamation multi-national companies, Indian companies, startups, research labs, institutes of both government funded as well as private.
Funding of new startups is also supported by allocating significant funding in recent budget. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rupees 1 Lakh Crore corpus for R&D in tech sectors with a 50-year interest-free loan.
Parag Naik, founder, Saankhya Labs, mentioned that – “Saankhya Labs is a wireless communication and semiconductor solutions company, designing a full spectrum of next-gen communication solutions for the present and the future. This includes products and solutions for broadband, satellite and broadcast applications including 5G NR, Direct to Mobile (D2M) Broadcast, rural broadband connectivity, satellite communication modems for IoT applications and multi-standard DTV modulators and demodulators.”
Vijay Muktamath, founder, Sensesemi Technologies mentioned that - “As part of the DLI Scheme, Sensesemi will be developing the SoC for IoMT and IoT devices, that shall have MCU and wireless IP integrated with ultra-low power analog front end with AI inferencing IP. Sensesemi aims to drive India’s semiconductor capabilities by providing connected SoC for everything from smart wearables, med-tech sector and other connected devices.”
Hitesh Garg, Vice President and India Country Manager NXP Semiconductor commented "We are excited to collaborate with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) to promote the Digital India Programme futureLABS's objectives of accelerating the domestic R&D for global impact through Ips, Standards and ESDM"
Keith Witek, Chief Operating Officer, Tenstorrent said "India is witnessing immense growth. What India is going to do over the next five to ten years is going to set the tone for the future. Tenstorrents' chiplet ecosystems, open hardware platforms, RISCV and artificial intelligence (AI) are a perfect match to reduce the cost of manufacture at scale. And it is the right time India takes advantage of the technology offerings from Tenstorrent and disrupt the status quo and incumbents as it catapult to the numero uno position. We are very happy to be part of this innovation and looking forward to the journey."
Savi Soin, President of Qualcomm India said, “India’s semiconductor ecosystem is working to create a new supply chain for both domestic and international markets, and Qualcomm is committed to supporting its growth. There is, and will continue to be, a large and growing demand for semiconductors as industries increasingly adopt intelligent, connected technologies and devices. We are excited about the opportunity this presents for Indian semiconductor startups to create domestic solutions, using the design and engineering talent in the country. Qualcomm will help them with the technology and the expertise needed to enable their success.”
